Directing EU Policy Towards Poverty Eradication: From Comitments to Targets to Results

At the UN World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen in 1995, the concept of poverty eradication was for the first time included in the language of the international community. Since then, progress has been made with integrating the concept into the international commitments of nations.

The recent policies of the European Commission dealing with poverty eradication reflect changes in the international community. While this is heralded as a new development, an historical analysis of Community aid shows that the commitment to poverty eradication dates back to the late 1970s. Furthermore, the resolutions of the European Parliament in the 1980s show remarkably little difference from their predecessors, despite numerous reforms by the Commission and important changes in the international context. Consequently, little use has been made of the wealth of experience in the area of poverty eradication.